We have been invited by Ulrike Quade Company Amsterdam to develop the visual concept for the performance of the chamber opera Le Vin Herbé, composed by Frank Martin (1890 – 1974) and performed by the choir Cappella Amsterdam with conductor Daniel Reuss and the Dutch String Collective.  Next to these parties ICK Amsterdam, with choreographers Pieter C. Scholten and Emio Greco and the junior company performed dance parts and played the Japanese puppets, under guidance of Tim Hammer. For the special light design Floriaan Ganzevoort has been responsable.

This amazing production started in June 2021 and from September 2021 till March 2022 we have developed and produced all the visual parts in close collaboration with Ulrike Quade and Tim Hammer. The material was wool felt as the base for all the parts of the scenery, the costumes, the accessories and the puppets.
The use of color is linked to that of 13th century heraldry, in which each (geographical) area could be recognised by a number of colours and patterns, applied to flags, buildings and clothing. Minerals in bright colours provide a hopeful monumental backdrop to the story, in which two lovers try to reach each other, hindered by deceit and war, by monsters and seas. Sometimes the minerals look like castles of kings, sometimes the tents of armies or those of the fleeing lovers. Or they refer to remnants of mythical places, where the gods have free rein and the fate of the people is determined.

For us, the elaboration of this project is close to our projects about migration such as  “No One Is Illegal” in which we make images related to the refugees across Europe, in search of a new shelter, a home and their loved ones. Sometimes the refugees don’t reach their destination and they dye during their wander through Europe.
Tristan and Isolde finally find each other in death.

Performances:
20 March 2022 Muziektheater aan het IJ Amsterdam
21 March 2022 De Nieuwe Kerk Den Haag
22 March 2022 Stadschouwburg Leiden
23 March 2022 Tivoli Vredenburg Utrecht
24 March 2022 De Bijloke Gent
29 March 2022 Theater Het Vrijthof Maastricht

(photography: Bas de Brouwer )